Reveille

Magnificent, a truly incredible, original film. Reveille is a perfect slow burning smooth cigarette, beginning hooks you, total euphoria halfway through & state of deep reflection by the end, wanting more. This film has not been made before, I'm not typically a fan of war films-this is deeper than war, a study of humanity. The director/writer Michael Akkerman and the DP Cooper Shine are brilliant, the style and beauty of the film is mind blowing, they put you there, not only in the film but in the time period. The most special part of the film for me is it's cast, an absolutely flawless ensemble. Better than any hollywood casted ensemble film I can think of in recent history. Although they are all spectacular, Joe Bongiovanni as Leo was my favorite. Like Michael Madsen in Resevoir Dogs, he stuck out the most for me. He brings a 70s style realism in his performance that you absolutely do not see anymore. This film will change you, it's a must see. Bravo to everyone involved in this groundbreaking masterpiece.

Background: The story of this film is inspired by chapter 4 of Audie Murphy's book "To Hell and Back". One could argue that it is a mostly accurate portrayal of events. Some of the characters are fictionalized for the sake of the story but it's quite clear that Jared Becker's "Sarge" is intended to portray Audie himself in this situation.

Audio and Cinematography: For a low budget film, Mike has done quite a good job. There are some issues one could argue is linked to budget and while it does detract at times, it's not a deal breaker by any means. For example there are some fairly overexposed shots here and there and there are some jarring moments of audio where editing could have been a tad better but, like I said, this is more of a budget issue and not something I'd hold against the film as a whole. Overall while some of the audio is where the film is weakest, it is audio that also makes the film strong during its strongest moments. The cracking of incoming gunfire is absolute spectacularly well done. While the moments of combat are brief, they are more than memorable in both their sound design and staging. All scenes in the cave, however, suffered very few issues with audio and visuals and honestly most everything sounded well and the cinematography and lighting was quite well done. I do want to rewatch this in my theater room from a bluray or raw media instead of Amazon as I'm sure some of the issues I encountered was due to the streaming platform.

Technical Accuracy: Akkerman was really striving for historical accuracy here and I think he did a very commendable job. Any issues were, at worst, incredibly minor and pedantic. I could go into what I noticed if someone wants but it really comes down to severe rivet counting if I'm being honest. It's significantly better than 99.9% of productions to include nearly every big budget film released in the last 20 years. The attention to detail is very good overall. Everything to very specific personal items, the way gear is being worn, the way its used, and the proper use of insignia given the period. Additionally, the feature of Afrika Korps uniforms on the NCOs as a carryover from their previous campaign is a nice touch.

Writing and Acting: The writing and performances themselves has a lot to commend. The portrayal of panic was mostly done well but honestly the portrayal of wounds (MAJOR kudos to the makeup department of this one) and wounded soldiers in the way they act is almost scary how well done it is. Typically low budget and indie productions have terrible dialog but this isn't an example of that. While there were moments of unnecessary exposition and some minor cliches, the dialog was excellent overall and felt very throughout the film. This dialog was further enhanced by some rather stellar performances. Four in particular stand out in my mind (in no particular order): Joe Bongiovanni's Leo, Jake Powers' Rowe, Kevin Sinic's Artur, and Bernd Wittneben's Brander.

Final thoughts: Overall Akkerman has created a beautiful film. It really hits some emotions that don't often arise in war films and we see the characters transform for better or for worse. The acting is quite believable and the writing quite organic. As a final rating I'd give it a 7/10. If it wasn't for some of the audio issues, it'd be a firm 8/10 in my book. It's not a bad film by any means, that was just something that broke my immersion a couple times. Additionally, it was slightly too long I'd argue. At 1 hour and 45 minutes, it told its story well but I feel like at 1 hour and 30 minutes, it could have achieved perfect flow. A minor complaint given the fact that this really is a fantastic film and one I would purchase on bluray without question and watch yearly.

Brilliant depiction of a soldier's experiences, one civilians can only imagine. Reveille is a throwback to the days when acting was subtle and provocative, when a mere gesture said it all, when understatement mattered. Ackerman takes us to the heart of the battlefield, to humanity in raw form in this artfully done, atmospheric depiction of war. Unconventionally, for a war flick, it slows down, pauses in all the right places underscoring the conflict of conscious, the self-preserving mechanism of laughter, the sanctity of loyalty and sacrifice, all present minus the distraction of frenetic energy and quick moving scenes. Instead, from the beginning, we agree to patience, to listen, reflect, ponder expressions, words, gestures, and all the while we're tricked by the dark humor and bonding of the Americans, but then jarred back to reality with a frequent panning of the camera to the Germans and their suffering, and so it goes back and forth, juxtaposing the two, laughter and pain, until the two are indistinguishable; and, hence, the psychological aspect, which makes it engrossing, disturbingly real, to the point where it's no longer about the enemy, or one side or the other, and war is deflated in a sense, absurdly irrelevant when weighed against a moral conscience. Masterpiece. Thank you for it!

This film keeps the viewer thoroughly immersed, from the opening title it immediately sucks you into a different world like a time machine with it's incredible artfully done cinematography and attention to detail of WWII in 1943. The outstanding performances by such a talented cast bring the viewer through a range of intense feelings and challenges their understanding of not just war but morality and humanity on a profound level. The characters feel as real as the danger that they're in and it's pulse pounding. This movie promotes a claustrophobic feeling as we follow the main characters through a time essential situation with chaos around the corner, this develops into a psychological battle between each other and their enemies. A brilliant and accurate depiction of war.

Great movie about war and suffering - interesting angles, draing in the viewer by protraying the two contrasting sides in war, all appearing as humans in their own communities, but savage enemies as seen from the other side - absolutely brilliant concept and execution.

Nice touches all along the movie, one feels as if they're right there beside the actors.

Dialogues are natural, no forced feeling at all - absolutely brilliant!

Not your typical bang-bang-boom-boom war movie so if you're into call of duty type stuff, better find something else to watch - oh and please don't come here complaining that the setting doesn't look anything like Germany :D:D and similar sillyness :D - it is stated that the story takes place in Italy :D:D.